FORA lets go of auditor in wake of traffic ticket controversy

The Fort Ord Reuse Authority is seeking a new auditor after voting to part ways with an accountant who said it was OK to reimburse the agency's executive officer for a traffic ticket.

The board voted unanimously Friday to let Ralph Marcello's contract expire in September. The Sacramento auditor signed off on the $290 reimbursement, reasoning that Michael Houlemard was on a business trip when he ran a stop sign in Carmel.

Marcello later suggested that Carmel police officer Steven Rana behaved unprofessionally during the April 2010 stop, a claim that outraged local police and was not borne out by the video of the stop subsequently released by the Police Department.

While the FORA board was unanimous in dropping Marcello, it was divided on whether it should deny the legal claim that brought the reimbursement to light.

The claim by Keep Fort Ord Wild demands the FORA general fund be reimbursed for a number of questionable expenses, including Houlemard's ticket, the monthly cost of his residential DSL service and multiple luncheons and dinners, at least one of which included Houlemard's wife.

The open-space advocates are also asking for a wide-ranging audit and a review of the district's travel and reimbursement policy.

Such claims are usually precursors to lawsuits against public agencies and are routinely denied. FORA attorney Jerry Bowden recommended the board follow suit at its meeting late Friday afternoon.

Bowden said Houlemard had reimbursed with interest the $290 cost of the ticket and traffic school. The rest of the expenses, he said, had been approved by several auditors.

Among them, presumably, was the outcast Marcello, who had served the district since September 2008.

County Supervisor Jane Parker and Monterey City Councilwoman Nancy Selfridge bucked the rest of the board's vote, saying they were uncomfortable with the appearance of blessing the questioned expenditures without a new professional opinion.

Bowden's explanation that the vote was "routine," Parker said, "wasn't a very compelling reason for me."

Selfridge said she has not even seen the actual claim or its documentation.

"I'm supposed to be a trustee of the Fort Ord land for residents of the city of Monterey, and I just felt I'm not being told the whole story," she said. "It's not that I'm not pro-FORA, but I want transparency in this."

Because the 11-2 vote was not unanimous, the issue will come back for a final vote at the board's July 26 special meeting. The board will also consider amending its appeal fee and will discuss its expense and records-retention policies.

On Friday, the board appointed Pacific Grove Mayor Pro Tempore Bill Kampe and Del Rey Oaks Mayor Jerry Edelen to a committee to review the expense policies. At Kampe's request, Seaside City Councilman Ian Oglesby was appointed as an alternate in case the Pacific Grove City Council votes to suspend its payment of FORA fees, an issue to be considered on its agenda Wednesday.

The various concerns come at a time when possible extension of FORA's authority appears on the fast track for approval in the state Legislature.